Cosmetic Procedures: The Brow Lift

Are you frustrated with sagging skin in your forehead region? Then the forehead lift and eyebrow lift, also called "the brow lift", may be just what you're seeking. This popular procedure is used to help reverse the aging process (think deep wrinkles and creases across your forehead caused by years of facial expressions and environmental effects). But don't be fooled. Younger people are also candidates if they have inherited traits, such as lowbrow or other problems such as deep frown.

What Is a Brow Lift?

The forehead lift is also known as an endobrow lift, an open brow lift, or a temporal lift. The procedure cosmetically corrects sagging in the forehead skin, upper eyelids and eyebrows.

Here's how:

Your surgeon will maneuver tissues and remove segments of muscles and skin that are responsible for wrinkles or deep frown. Sometimes, this procedure is performed in conjunction with a facelift or reshaping of the nose.

Think about it. You want your facial features to have the same contoured appearance. If you only have the work done on your forehead, other areas will appear more aged. If you are interested in learning about other procedures, you can discuss the options with your surgeon.

There are two methods to lift your forehead and eyebrow areas:

the classic lift
endoscopic lift.

The classic lift involves one continuous incision, beginning at the level of your ears and going up around your hair line. Depending on where your hair line is, the surgeon will move the incision line to avoid a visible scar. For instance, if you are a man who is balding, the surgeon can make the incision mid-scalp, so the scar can be hidden in the remaining hair.

Here's how the endoscopic lift differs: Instead of making one continuous incision, your surgeon will make a few shorter incisions in the scalp. He or she will insert a scope (small camera on the end of a thin tube) into one of the incisions in order to view the tissues and muscles from a screen. At the same time, he or she will use another device inserted in another incision to make the necessary alterations.

In this procedure, small anchors are used to secure the offending tissue once it's altered appropriately. Those anchors are tiny, but mighty. They'll keep your tissue under control for years. Because the incisions are smaller, this procedure is less invasive. You will experience minimal scarring and shortened recovery time.

Does My Insurance Cover This Procedure?

A forehead lift is a cosmetic procedure and is not covered under insurance plans. It's important that you receive price quotations in writing from your surgeon's office and that you understand charges for any follow-up care.